Citation

Odgers CL, Robins SJ, Russell MA. Law Hum. Behav. 2010; 34(6): 429-444.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California, Irvine, 4312 Social and Behavioral Sciences Gateway, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA, codgers@uci.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, American Psychological Association)

DOI

10.1007/s10979-009-9199-3

PMID

19847634

Abstract

The present study assessed the physical health of a population of girls sentenced to custody in a large US State via medical examinations and clinical assessments in adolescence and young adulthood. Findings indicated that injuries, obesity, and sexually transmitted diseases were the norm, with over 50% of the population meeting criteria for each of these health problems. A dose-response relationship was documented between childhood victimization and injuries and injury risk in adolescence and self-harm, HIV risk, physical health symptoms, and hospitalizations in young adulthood. The relationship between childhood victimization and poor adult physical health was fully mediated by health-risk behaviors in adolescence. Clinical and policy implications of the high mortality and morbidity risk among female juvenile offenders are discussed.

Language: en